Law Firm

Die Klärung der seit Langem umstrittenen Frage, ob Unternehmen Kartellbußgelder von ihren Geschäftsleitern ersetzt verlangen können, rückt einen Schritt näher. Zwar hat der EuGH im Rahmen des Vorabentscheidungsverfahrens C-347/25 noch nicht darüber entschieden, ob ein Regress von Kartellbußgeldern mit Art. 101 AEUV vereinbar ist. Gestern wurden jedoch die mit Spannung erwarteten Schlussanträge des Generalanwalts Szpunar veröffentlicht, der sich klar gegen eine Zulässigkeit eines Bußgeldregresses im Kartellrecht ausspricht. Den Inhalt der Schlussanträge, die Hintergründe des Verfahrens und die offenen Folgefragen beleuchten Dr. Alexander Retsch, Dr. Jens Poll und Dr. Janine Pietsch in unserem Legal Spotlight.

Der BGH möchte vom EuGH klären lassen, ob Gerichtsstandsvereinbarungen zugunsten von Drittstaatengerichten – hier: englischer Gerichte nach dem Brexit – bei Ansprüchen aus Verstößen gegen Art. 101, 102 AEUV wirksam sind (BGH, Beschluss v. 17. Juni 2026 KZR 29/25). 
Hintergrund ist, dass die unionsrechtlichen Wettbewerbsregeln zum ordre public der Union gehören und nur mitgliedstaatliche Gerichte ein Vorabentscheidungsersuchen nach Art. 267 AEUV stellen können. Das Verfahren ist unter dem Az. C-980/26 beim EuGH anhängig.

In unserem Legal Spotlight ordnen Dr. Christian Karbaum und Maximilian Schoone den Vorlagebesschluss ein.

Die Hauptversammlungssaison 2026 ist für die in DAX und MDAX notierten Gesellschaften seit Ende Juni bzw. Anfang Juli 2026 beendet. Anders als im (Vor-)Jahr 2025 wurde die diesjährige Saison in rechtlicher Hinsicht nicht durch das Dauerthema Versammlungsformat dominiert. Seinerzeit stand bei einem Großteil der Gesellschaften die Verlängerung der Ermächtigung auf der Tagesordnung. Die Hauptversammlung der TUI AG hatte der Verlängerung der Ermächtigung zur Abhaltung virtueller Hauptversammlungen gleich zu Beginn der Saison 2025 nicht zugestimmt und auch der Beschlussvorschlag der Siemens AG hatte nicht die im konkreten Fall erforderliche Dreiviertelmehrheit erreicht.^[1]

Since the firm was founded in 2007 the JUVE Handbook of Commercial Law Firms lists GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ among the TOP 3 law firms in the Western Region, the TOP 13 law firms in antitrust law, the TOP 16 law firms in  corporate law as well as in the areas of M&A and compliance investigations with a focus on antitrust law in the most recent handbook 2025/2026. In addition, several of our partners are listed as Leading Counsel: Dr Andreas Merkner and Dr Marco Sustmann (both corporate), Dr Silke Möller, Dr Markus Wirtz and Dr Christian Karbum (all antitrust). Furthermore, our two partners Dr. Alexander Retsch and Dr. Friedrich Schulenburg are listed as rising stars in corporate law. Our partner Dr Max Schulz is listed as rising star in competition law. In the JUVE Awards, GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ has received several awards, such as Law Firm of the Year for Antitrust Law (2012, further nominations in 2010, 2017, 2022 and 2025), Law Firm of the Year for Corporate Law (2014 and 2023) and Law Firm of the Year in the West (2013). In addition, the firm was nominated as Law Firm of the Year in 2018.

For many years, GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ has been listed for Germany in Chambers for the areas Competition/European Law (among the TOP 12 in the Chambers Germany Guide 2026) and Corporate/M&A Mid-Market (among the TOP 4 in the Chambers Germany Guide 2026). For many years, GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ has also been recommended in the Chambers Global Guide for both areas (most recently TOP 12 for Competition European Law and TOP 4 for Corporate/M&A Mid-Market).

In addition, our partners Dr Christian Karbaum, Dr Silke Möller and Dr Markus Wirtz (all Competition/European Law) as well as Dr Achim Glade, Dr Andreas Merkner and Dr Marco Sustmann (all Corporate/M&A Mid-Market) are also ranked individually.

In 2026, Chambers Germany recognized GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ as Law Firm of the Year in the Corporate/M&A (Mid-Market) category.

The Global Competition Review, the leading international antitrust law magazine, has listed GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ for many years in the GCR 100 ranking, which evaluates antitrust practices around the globe. In the renowned, worldwide GCR ranking "Women in Antitrust", our partner Dr Silke Möller is recommended as one of the leading experts in antitrust law.

IFLR 1000 - the Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms lists GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ in the areas of M&A and Restructuring as well as Dr Andreas Merkner and Dr Marco Sustmann (both for the M&A area).

Legal 500 Germany has recommended GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ for many years as a leading law firm in the areas of corporate and antitrust law and Dr Markus Wirtz as a leading name in antitrust law and Dr. Max Schulz as a next-generation partner.

The internationally recognized legal directory Lexology (formerly Who's Who Legal) honors Dr Silke Möller and Dr Markus Wirtz as thought leaders in the field of competition in its worldwide guide. Dr. Christian Karbaum is recognized as a Future Leader in the Competition Guide.

The partners of our firm are listed in the Best Lawyers ranking for Germany, which is published in cooperation with Handelsblatt (the majority of them have been listed for many years). In the latest edition 2027, this includes the areas of Capital Markets Law, Competition/Antitrust Law, Corporate Governance and Compliance Practice, Corporate Law, European Union Law and Mergers & Acquisitions Law.

The business magazines brandeins, Focus and Wirtschaftswoche have regularly recommended GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ in the firm's core areas for years.

The azur100 ranking has listed GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ as a TOP employer for many years.

Both the firm's marketing and human resources, as well as our firm's communications and management, have been recognized with several PMN Management Awards.

“Die Praxis steht für kartellrechtl. anspruchsvolle Mandate wie den Angriff auf Freigabeentscheidungen der Kartellbehörden u. die Beratung zu Geschäftsmodellen der Digitalökonomie.”

“Die D’dorfer Kanzlei genießt gr. Ansehen für die Beratung zu komplexen gesellschafts-, aktien- u. kapitalmarktrechtl. Fragen.”

JUVE Handbuch, 2025/2026

"Das Team von Glade Michel Wirtz verfolgt stets einen 360-Grad-Ansatz und zeigt einen Blick über den Tellerrand hinaus. Es verfügt über eine sehr ausgeprägte juristische Expertise."

Chambers Germany Guide 2025

“The flagship of the Düsseldorf unit is its expertise in complex corporate, capital and stock corporation law issues. GMW has several established partners in this field, in particular Sustmann and Merkner. (...) Another field in which the firm is gaining more and more stature is advising on the interface to critical issues such as compliance and litigation. topics such as compliance and litigation.”

“The D'dorf firm is increasingly successful in increasing its involvement in M&A transactions.”

“With high-caliber mandates in the area of corporate law, D'dorf confirms its claim to act on an equal footing with large law firms.”

“Glade Michel Wirtz has impressively succeeded in continuously expanding its high-caliber client base. Today, it assists the who's who of the German corporate landscape. (...) Dr. Marco Sustmann and Dr. Andreas Merkner in particular are in demand as highly respected corporate, stock corporation and capital markets lawyers when it comes to the legal high wire.”

JUVE Handbook 2023/2024

"Glade Michel Wirtz is very good at combining expertise and personalities into a cohesive team."

Chambers Europe, 2023

“More than almost any other law firm of its type, GMW is recognized for its high-stakes corporate and stock corporation law advice.”

“The practice is regarded as a specialist for complex cooperation projects and disputes involving antitrust law, which often require its proven expertise in technology issues. The fact that this positioning is coherent and proves to be an advantage in view of the digitalization of the economy is demonstrated by well-known new clients and projects.”

JUVE Handbook 2022/2023

"The GMW team is extremely competent, reliable, always available and extremely hard-working! Their knowledge of capital market law in particular, but also of corporate law, is exceptionally good! The clear language, a clear opinion and a clear point of view facilitate the discussion and lead to convincing solutions! There is no better law firm that I have come across in my more than 40 years of professional experience!"

The Legal 500, 2022

"GLADE MICHEL WIRTZ consistently punches above its weight to compete with the big national and international firms in the German antitrust market. Its three-partner team of Markus Wirtz, Silke Möller and Christian Karbaum – who all co-lead the practice – have stellar reputations and bring quality to the firm’s work."

Global Competition Review, 2022

"The Düsseldorf law firm is one of the most renowned units in the market when it comes to advising on corporate and antitrust law issues."

JUVE Handbook 2021/2022

"The Düsseldorf law firm's antitrust practice regularly stands out for the high quality of its work."

JUVE Handbook 2019/2020

"The antitrust practice has made a name for itself for tricky cases in uncharted legal territory."

JUVE Handbook 2018/2019

"Commentators identify the lawyers' "in-depth knowledge" as a key strength, describing them as "solutions-focused and very reliable". Another adds: "They commit themselves to the client completely."

Chambers Europe, 2018